Like a Gift
by bailey1ak
Summary: They were becoming friends, but could they ever become more. R/K
1. The Foxhole

_**A/N: **This is my first attempt at fanfiction. Please review and let me know how the story is doing. Any type of criticism is helpful. Enjoy!_

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Stargate Atlantis or it's wonderful characters.

Spoilers: Through Season 4 - Quarantine.

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**1 – The Foxhole**

Major Lorne looked at his watch and let out a sigh, wondering how much longer they were going to wait at this position. With the looks Ronon kept giving him he was starting to get a little uncomfortable. He wished the guy would just spit out whatever was on his mind. Ronon was a man of few words and he obviously wasn't sure yet if he was going to waste any on Lorne.

They had been in position at the gate now for well over an hour. He and Ronon were to the right of the gate, behind the cover of some boulders. He knew that Colonel Shepperd and Teyla were across from them, behind some tree cover on the other side of the gate. There were also several Marines spread out watching the area, waiting for the men at the gate to do something that would indicate why they were there.

Lorne could feel Ronon looking his way again. "What?"

"Nothin."

"Listen Ronon, we could be sitting here awhile. Why don't you just say whatever it is that has you twitchin' over there."

"I just hate sittin."

"OK, whatever…"

About 15 minutes later Lorne had had about as many furtive glances from Ronon as he could take. "You know, it might help the time go by faster if you just spit it out already."

Ronon grunted his disagreement as he looked away. Just when Lorne thought Ronon truly wasn't going to spill, he heard him clear his throat.

"Just wondered somethin. Thought you'd know the answer."

Lorne waited, knowing that Ronon would get to it in his own time, although at this point his curiosity was piqued. Ronon spoke again quietly. "There is a woman that I have found… intriguing, but she's from Earth, and I'm not sure what to do about it."

Lorne tried not to smile, but in the end had to quirk his eyebrows. Ronon gave him a hard look before looking away. When he looked back he continued. "I … are… would a woman from Earth be interested in a man… not from Earth?"

Lorne had to look away to keep from laughing out loud. Once he had gathered his composure he looked back at Ronon. "Man Ronon, you're kidding right?" As Ronon gave him the death glare, Lorne quickly continued. "Granted you frighten many, well most, of the personnel on Atlantis, I can't begin to think you haven't noticed the looks you get from most of the women. Some of them don't even wait until you aren't looking."

"Maybe a few." Ronon conceded, "but they scare me."

Now Lorne did chuckle, although quietly. They were still watching the gate and didn't want the bad guys to know they were there.

"So I take it this woman you find intriguing is not one of those women."

"No."

"So, you wanna know if a woman from Earth would be interested in a man not from Earth? And my answer to that would be if you're talking about you, then yes. I don't think that the question is Earth vs. non-Earth though. The question will probably be 'is this woman attracted to you.'" Lorne paused for a moment then shaking his head began again. "Why didn't you go to Sheppard with this? You two are friends."

"I can't ask Sheppard, he would never let it go. He can be… relentless."

"Like a dog with a bone," Lorne agreed.

"Like what?"

"Never mind, but I get your point."

The two sat in silence for a moment then Ronon spoke up. "So how do I find out if she has any interest in me?"

"Well, there are several different ways; it kind of depends on the gal." Lorne peeked over at Ronon before continuing. "How did you do it on Sateda?"

"Grew up with the girl, never really had to think about it. Never really thought I'd think about it again… but lately…" Ronon just growled a bit as he looked away.

Lorne shook his head, Ronon had it bad. He hoped the girl was ready because Lorne had seen Ronon on many missions, and once in action he usually got his way.

"You could just ask her if she's interested."

Ronon looked at him like he was talking crazy.

"Ok then… how about just find ways to be were she is as often as possible. For instance the mess hall, movie nights, the PX, that kind of thing. You know, situations where you can interact with her." Lorne thought for a moment, "but don't become a stalker."

"A stalker?"

"Yeah, um…" At that moment Lorne was saved from this awkward conversation by his CO.

"Major, Ronon, heads up, looks like there is some movement at the gate. Everyone stay alert."

There was a low growl over their ear pieces. "Don't know why we can't just stun 'em and get out of here. I'm hungry."

"Hang on big guy; we just need to see why they're here. This planet is suppose to be uninhabited remember. These guys weren't there when we came through this morning, let's make sure we're not the reason they're loitering there now."

Within a minute they saw more men come into the clearing packing what looked like a deer strung up on a pole being carried by a man on each end. With a quick look around one man began dialing the gate while two more deer-like things were carried into the clearing and then they all went through the gate.

There was nothing but silence for a few seconds after the gate closed. The silence was only broken when a growl was heard over the ear-piece.

"Did I mention I was hungry?"


	2. CMO Sign

**2 – The CMO**

Dr. Jennifer Keller, CMO. That is what it said on her office door. Every time it caught her eye it threw her. She actually hated the sign, it reminded her of too many memories that she wished would go away.

She desperately missed Carson. He was the reason she had finally said yes to coming to Atlantis. He had been a close friend of her father's before her father retired. She had loved her "uncle" Carson and was quite sad when her dad's retirement to "properly" raise his daughter had meant settling in Wisconsin where she was rarely visited by her uncle Carson.

The SGC had been trying to recruit her for sometime, but it took a visit from Uncle Carson to convince her. When she found that she would be working with him she took the chance to mentor under him gratefully. She had found that Atlantis was a big challenge, but she was up for it.

Conventional medicine was out the door. She had learned how to treat the effects of a stun gun and how to combat wraith enzymes. She had perfected stitches. Between sparring matches and off-world mission teams she had gotten to the point where she could stitch in her sleep. Many nights she had done just that getting late night calls that a member of SGA-1 needed to be stitched up. Most of the time it was Ronon.

"Whatcha doin' Doc?" drawled a low growl from behind her.

Startled, she whipped around to see the most stitched man in Atlantis casually standing behind her. Hopefully he hadn't been there long watching her stare at her own office door, "you know you're stealthy for such a big guy."

She looked back at her door. "I was just thinking about how much I hate that sign" she said pointing at her door.

"It's your name and title isn't it?"

"Technically, but in my head, and I hope for the most part in the heads of those on Atlantis, I'm just Doctor Keller. That is who I was when Carson was here, and other then feeling like part of my heart is missing, it is still who I am now that he is gone." She looked back at the sign and shook her head pulling herself out of her thoughts.

"Oh gosh, I'm sorry Ronon, I got a little lost there. Did you need something?"

"No worries Doc, just came by to get that medical release so I can start sparring again."

Jennifer gave him a wry smile and raised her eyebrow.

Ronon ducked his head slightly and grinned at her. "The Deadalus will be here after lunch with a dozen new recruits."

She laughed at him, "and you want to play with the new kids. Well, why don't you hop up on the table there, and I'll take a look at your ribs."

After giving him a quick physical she declared him fit. "Now be careful and don't hurt the newbies too much. You don't want to scare them too much until the Deadalus is out of range and they can't go crying home." Jenn paused and looked Ronon in the eye to make sure she had his attention. "You really need to ease up for yourself too. You have had to make a lot of trips down here lately. Maybe give Lorne and Shepperd a chance to earn a little respect from the newbies too."

Ronon nodded his head, but she noticed an almost guilty look for a split second before he looked away. "I'll do my best, Doc."

* * *

While waiting for the Deadalus to arrive Ronon started to get an idea. He understood her hating all the fancy titles and stuff. It seemed that everyone on Atlantis had some type of title that went with their name and he was glad that he and Teyla had not had to add any type of title to their name.

He had also dropped the titles or rather had never adopted using the titles with his own team. They were family, and you did not address family in such a formal way. He had added this privilege to Major Lorne and Doctor Keller without really noticing that he had lumped them in, until the doctor had brought up her hatred for the sign earlier today.

She was right that he didn't think of here as _Dr. Jennifer Keller, CMO._ She was just Doc to him. He hoped that others did not think of her the way he did, but he did hope that they saw her the way she wanted to be seen, as Doctor Keller.

Ronon found himself standing just inside of the custodial staff's office and noticed that he had gotten the attention of everyone in the room by simply walking in. He cleared his throat and walked up to the first man in custodial garb that he saw.

"Are you the one that puts signs on doors?"

The man looked taken aback, but sputtered out, "No, we just put them up. Did we get one wrong?"

Ronon realized that he was making the man very nervous so he tried to finish quickly. "I need you to change the one on Doctor Keller's office."

"Ok… is it wrong?"

"No, she just wants it to say Doctor Keller instead of that long title thing." When the man just stared at him he asked. "Can you do that?"

"Oh, yes, I can make sure that gets done right away."

Ronon awkwardly thanked the man and left thinking that it didn't go too badly. Now he had just enough time for lunch before the Deadalus arrived with the 'new kids', as Doc called them.


	3. Within Two Minutes

_**A/N: **__I am so thankful and humbled by all of the reviews and encouragement that I received for my first two chapters. I hope that the rest of the chapters can live up to the expectation. Thank you all so much. And thank you Renisanz for all your help with the beta work, as well as directions/encouragement to post._

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Stargate Atlantis or it's wonderful characters.

Spoilers: Through Season 4 - Quarantine.

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3 – Within Two Minutes

"Hey wait, Doctor Keller? Ronon are you sure, the woman has some pretty big needles at her disposal! It's not like you aren't a frequent visitor to the infirmary. Are you sure you want to risk that…" Lorne paused for a second. "Hey," he said as his gaze swung over to see Ronon surprised. "_That_ is why my Marines have been getting so lucky with you lately! You've been trying to get hurt," he accused.

Ronon just growled and looked away. They were the only two still in the armory suiting up for the trip off world. They were headed back to the planet where they had witnessed the hunting parties use the gate. Rodney was going to see if he could get a copy of the latest activity at the gate and try to establish where they gated to. Carter was hoping to possibly set up trade with them. They obviously would be a great source of meat if they were willing to share, and who knew what else they had.

As the two finished suiting up they began the walk to the gate room where their respective teams were waiting. Lorne could not believe that Ronon was using injury to get closer to Doctor Keller. Although with Ronon's high tolerance for pain, it probably was not that big a deal to him. Lorne smirked as he realized that Ronon would also have Keller's undivided attention, and she would be all up in his personal space while examining him. Maybe it wasn't such a bad way to get her attention after all.

"You know when I said to find ways to be where she is, I was thinking more like movie night or possibly finding out what time she eats and conveniently eating at the same time," Lorne explained.

"She doesn't usually make it to movie night and I've never seen the woman eat."

"Is that what is holding you up and making you resort to visiting the infirmary?"

Ronon just grunted at him, still unsure how Lorne had guessed Doctor Keller. Lorne had been bugging him about his object of interest. He had finally relented and told him that she was non-military.

"Listen when we get back I will show you how to make sure that Doctor Keller makes it to movie night."

Again Ronon just grunted at him, but he let it go because they had arrived at the gate and the dialing sequence had already been started. Sheppard was addressing everyone as they readied to go through the gate. "…routine, be alert. Once Rodney has what we need we will finish our look around and come back. It is a short trip and our scheduled return is in 2 hours." Sheppard looked at the active gate and nodded at everyone, "Let's move out."

* * *

Lorne and Ronon were the last through the gate due to their late arrival but as Ronon moved through the wormhole and onto the planet he found them under immediate fire. As he and Lorne took cover like those who had crossed ahead of them they returned the fire and began listening to Sheppard's orders being barked in their ear pieces over the noise of the gate shutting down. He had the men spread out and provide cover for Rodney while he dialed the gate. After the outgoing wormhole was established Lorne heard Sheppard send a message through the gate that they were coming in hot. He then ordered the team members through the gate with Sheppard, Lorne and Ronon providing cover. After everyone was through the three made a dash for the gate throwing shots over their shoulders as they went.

Ronon heard the gate disengaged behind and watched Carter speeding down the stairs toward them. She looked at all of them before asking, "What happened out there."

He heard Sheppard filling her in and tuned out for a few minutes, his ears perked back up when he heard her addressing him, "Go get that looked at right away. I'll let Doctor Keller know you're on your way."

Lorne's eyes flew to Ronon standing next to him. "What…" he took in the graze mark bleeding on his upper shoulder and mumbled, "You have got to be kidding me," as he rolled his eyes.

He heard disbelief in Lorne's voice as he said, "Come on big guy, let's go."

Ronon glared at him. Since when did Lorne become comfortable enough to call him "big guy." Only Sheppard got away with that and only because Shep had never been afraid of his glares.

"Come on." He watched Lorne start to precede him from the gate room toward the infirmary. "This I have got to see for myself," he heard faintly from Lorne.

Ronon reluctantly started moving to follow Lorne out of the gate room. As he passed Sheppard, Ronon noticed that he had a very confused look on his face as he watched Lorne leave. When Sheppard's gaze swung back to him Ronon just shrugged his shoulders and kept moving.

* * *

Jennifer knew that Sheppard and Lorne's team had gone off-world. Being CMO, she had her com tuned to be able to hear all gate activity. It helped her keep surprises in the infirmary as minimal as possible, a slight heads up you might say. She also had a posted schedule of the return times of all returning teams.

So Jennifer was very surprised to hear unscheduled off-world activation so soon after hearing the teams leave. She quickly announced to her staff to be ready because there was an unscheduled team returning. She finished with the chart she was updating and a moment later she heard Carter over her com letting her know that Ronon was on his way with an injury.

She was trying really hard not to be looking forward to Ronon's impending arrival at the infirmary. She was a doctor and as such should always want everyone to be healthy, so she felt slight guilt for being happy about seeing Ronon shortly. She figured he must not be hurt that badly if he was coming to her under his own power. A moment later Major Lorne entered the infirmary, not Ronon.

"Major?"

Lorne was looking at her grinning. "He's coming."

Jennifer was about to ask him why he was grinning like an idiot but Ronon rounded the corner and all she could see was him and blood on his arm.

"Well hell Ronon, only you could get hurt on a mission that only lasted 2 minutes!" Jennifer shook her head laughing at him. "Get up on the table and let me take a look."

Jennifer brought over the supplies needed to clean him up. She looked over and saw that Evan was still there. "So Evan, how did he manage this while everyone else was smart enough to get out of the way?"

Jennifer heard a mumbled jumble that sounded something like, "Wouldn't be surprised if money changed hands." Then she heard him clear his throat, "Just lucky that way, I guess."

"Well, you are lucky in that it is just a graze." Jennifer finished cleaning and dressing his wound.

Ronon was looking down at his arm where she had just placed a band aid. "Is that really necessary Doc." When he looked up he noticed the twinkle of mischief in her eyes and the smirk on her face and he could not help but grin stupidly back at her. She could take his breath away with out any effort.

Lorne piped in, "It might make him a target for bullies, Doc."

Ronon growled at Lorne making Jennifer laugh.

"Go on, both of you, out of here now. I have real work to do and possibly real injuries to attend to." With a mock glare and an about face she walked away.


	4. Movie Night

_**A/N: **__I am happy to see that people seem to be enjoying this story! I sure am enjoying the writing and watching for reviews side of it._

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Stargate Atlantis or it's wonderful characters.

Spoilers: Through Season 4 - Quarantine.

**4 – Movie Night**

Four and a half hours later Evan and Ronon stood around the corner from the entrance to the infirmary. Ronon of course was pacing because waiting or being still continued to be something of a challenge for him.

"You are driving me crazy Ronon," Evan stated exasperated. "Are there ants in your pants?"

"Are there what?"

"Never mind, can you just stand still. This is supposed to look very casual and very unplanned. She is going to get suspicious if we round the corner looking nervous." Evan was getting antsy too. "Why am I holding your hand for this again?"

At that moment both heard Jennifer yelling goodnight to her staff. Ronon and Evan gave each other a nod and rounded the corner. After a few steps they had caught up with Jennifer.

"Hey, Doc," Evan greeted her. "How was the rest of your day?"

"Oh, you know, not many teams out so it was kind of quiet." Jennifer smirked and looked over at the two guys. "Actually any time Sheppard and Lorne's are not off-world it is pretty quiet. I don't think Sheppard considers it a completed mission unless one of them is injured."

Both men gave her the evil eye before chuckling. Ronon looked down at his band aid as they continued on towards the transport. "Sure seems that way." Lorne heard him mumble.

Jennifer spoke up again, "What are you boys up to?"

Lorne gave Ronon an encouraging nod.

Ronon gave a grunt before speaking up, "On our way to Sheppard's for movie night." By this time they were in front of Jennifer's room. "We'll wait here for you while you change."

"Oh, I don't know…"

Lorne decided to jump back in. "Come on, Doc, You said it was a quiet day. Come finish it off with a movie with all of us."

"Oh, all right, as long as McKay is not picking the movie I'm in." Jennifer left them outside her door to go change.

Ronon turned and Lorne could see the slight worry in his look. Lorne knew exactly what he was thinking so he voiced it. "Yeah, I'm not sure who is picking the movie either."

* * *

When Jennifer headed home after the movie she wasn't surprised to find Ronon ready to leave at the same time. It was that or continue listening to the guys argue. They had watched _Serenity_ again, and of course Lorne and McKay were in a heated discussion of Wraith versus Reaver. Personally she would rather not meet either.

As they shut the door to Sheppard's room with the heated discussion muffled finally, Ronon was chuckling and shaking his head. "So Doc, what do you think: Wraith or Reaver?"

She rolled her eyes and laughed along as they began walking, "I would have to say Wraith. What about you Ronon?"

"Same. You turnin' in?" He gestured towards her room that was just a few steps ahead.

"Nah, I can't sleep right after a movie like that. I'll probably walk for awhile first, clear my mind." They took a few steps past her room and she began to slow her stride, unsure what to say next. Umm… would you like to walk with me?"

"Yes."

"Good," she shuddered, "because after that movie I don't know if walking by myself would actually help."

They soon found themselves sitting on an out of the way pier, enjoying the cool night breeze, both dangling their feet over the edge. Neither had said much on the walk out, but it hadn't been awkward in the least.

Jennifer looked at Ronon and saw that he was watching their swaying feet as if mesmerized. She would love to know what he was thinking about and, more importantly, what he thought of her, but she was not yet comfortable enough to ask this quiet man such a question. She opted for something that seemed more neutral. "It is beautiful out here tonight. Do you wander out here often?"

"Yes, but I don't 'wander' out here," he lightly chuckled. "I'm usually running out here… just enjoying being away from everything. What about you, Doc. Do you 'wander' out here often?"

"Sometimes, when I am too stressed to sleep I do. It helps me relax enough to fall asleep. The longer we're here the more things I discover keep me awake. It's kind of a scary galaxy." Jennifer thought for a moment. "Was it scary for you, growing up in this galaxy?"

"When I was a child my parents tried to minimize the fear. We were a lot like the Athosian children. We were well versed in the Wraith, but we had never lived through a culling, so like most children it was not the reality. Since we didn't travel through the ring ourselves we didn't see beyond our own reality."

As Ronon was relating his story Jennifer had laid back so that she could stare up at the sky while dangling her legs. Ronon did the same and then continued.

"When I was older I joined our military and became a very strong soldier, advancing to specialist very quickly. That's when I learned just how fragile life was." Ronon could not believe that he was telling this small woman all about his life just because she asked. There was something peaceful, relaxing and freeing in telling her. He eased closer to her so that their shoulders were touching and continued.

Jennifer found Ronon's voice mesmerizing and completely relaxing. His deep gruff voice was able to send chills tingling through her and calm her all at the same time. She had never heard him talk this much and was sure it was due to the atmosphere. It was dark yet starry out and very intimate.

She was sure that lying here shoulder to shoulder made it easy to feel as if they had slipped into another world, away from everything. He related stories of his time with the military and adventures that had been both victorious and sad as they defended their world and went through the gate to other worlds.

Jennifer knew that sleep would claim her soon but she didn't want to break this spell they were under. She felt Ronon nudge her shoulder with his "Doc, we should probably head back before you fall asleep out here."

She knew he was right but regretted that the night was ending. She let Ronon help her up and they started back towards the transport and their rooms.

"Thank you Ronon," Jennifer said as they arrived at her door.

"I kind of went on a bit" he admitted slightly embarrassed.

"It's called _sharing_ and I enjoyed it very much." She watched him look at his feet again. She was feeling a little brave, probably still under the spell a bit. She took a step closer to him and went up on tip toes, gently placing a kiss on his cheek. "Goodnight Ronon."

She quickly waved her door open and stepped through without looking back.


	5. Friendship Established

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Stargate Atlantis or it's wonderful characters.

Spoilers: Through Season 4 - Quarantine.

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5 – Friendship Established

Lorne caught Ronon on his way back from the gym. "Hey big guy, I was on my way to eat you should come with me."

"Yeah, well I need to shower first so you'd have to wait."

"Well, be quick about it," Lorne urged.

Ronon just grunted in response, but he was sure the Satedan would be quick. At least he hoped so because he just left him in the hall outside his room with nothing but thumbs to twiddle.

Lorne's mind began to wander; he was still not sure what it was about the good doctor that was attracting Ronon. He would've thought that someone more like Teyla would be his speed. Someone that shared his strength, courage and experience in the field. A woman who could relate to his satisfaction over a victory or understand his anger over losing a battle, someone who could fight by his side.

Doctor Keller was almost the complete opposite. Being off-world scared her. In most cases she caused the worst case scenarios when off world through no fault of her own. She was a female version of Charlie Brown now that he thought about it. Although she had not been off world that often, he would bet that she was actually more of a liability than Rodney.

Lorne was pulled out of his thoughts when Ronon's door slid open. Ronon looked at him for a short moment and then started moving down the hall with his usual long stride. Lorne moved quickly to catch up to him.

"So you hungry or trying to loose me?"

Ronon glared at him but continued moving.

"So I saw that you and Doc left after movie night at the same time. Did you get a chance to find out if she has any interest in you?"

"Don't know. We… talked."

"So… I've been wondering... why the Doctor, why someone so… I don't know exactly, just... not like you? Why not one of the Marine's or someone like Teyla?" Lorne had to stop short when he realized that Ronon had stopped walking.

He turned around to see what was holding the man up. "What?"

"That's why," Ronon said quiet simply and started walking again. After a minute he felt Lorne looking at him while they walked but refused to look back. He knew Lorne still didn't get it. Without breaking his stride he tried to clarify. "She's like a gift when it isn't your birthday… just… unexpected… makes you smile." With that Ronon shrugged his shoulders and continued on to the mess hall glad it was within site. If Lorne didn't get it, then he just didn't get it.

Lorne finished filling his tray and looked around for a table. He had sought Ronon out for lunch to see how the courting was going and maybe give him a few more suggestions. He and Ronon were becoming friends rather then just acquaintances and he was enjoying it. He was having particular fun watching the warrior get all flustered over a girl.

As he looked out over the tables and noticed Doctor Keller eating alone at a table, he smirked and walked purposely towards her table. This should be entertaining.

* * *

Jennifer was sitting eating her breakfast. She wasn't working in the infirmary today because she was going off world. Trips away from Atlantis always made her nervous, so she was eating in an attempt to settle her stomach. She kept reminding herself that this wasn't even really a mission. Teyla was going to New Athos to visit her people and Jennifer was accompanying her to set up a small clinic for the day in case anyone was in need of medical assistance or regular checkups.

"Hey, Doc, do you mind a little company?"

"Of course not Major, sit" hopefully a little company would help her put aside her anxiousness for a little while.

"Hey," came a familiar voice beside her. Of course now she had a whole different reason to be nervous. This would be the first time seeing Ronon since movie night - since kissing his cheek and bailing into her room.

"Good morning Ronon. Hey, before I forget, thank you for getting my sign changed. That was very thoughtful of you. It took me by surprise when I saw it at first." Jennifer tried not to blush as she thanked him. She was the CMO after all; she should be more grown up about these things. She missed the raised eyebrow that Lorne gave Ronon.

"Watcha up to today, Doc?" Lorne asked as he began eating his breakfast.

"Well, today I am going off-world for a clinic. This is why I am eating dried toast, cereal and tea." She gave a short laugh. "I am trying to settle my nerves."

"I was kind of wondering about the geriatric meal you have," Lorne laughed. "So who has to go with you?"

Jennifer watched Ronon give him a sharp look and then Lorne began again. "Who gets to go with you?"

Jennifer laughed. "Don't worry, that doesn't offend me. I am well aware that the teams cringe when they hear I'll be going off-world. I overheard the last team I came back with suggesting something like those house arrest security bracelets the justice system uses on Earth for criminals. That way if I get to far away from the rest of the team for any reason, they would be alerted. I am sure Rodney is working on it right now."

"What happened on your last mission Doc?" Ronon looked like he was offended for her.

"It's ok Ronon; they didn't mean anything by it. We were walking back to the gate; I stopped to adjust my pack after tying a shoe. I could still hear them in front of me walking so I kept following the sounds of them walking through the forest in front of me. I guess I should've called out and made sure it was them since I couldn't actually see them. When I came to a clearing I realized I'd been following a forest animal." Jennifer grinned remembering "it was a cute Bambie looking animal." She shrugged. "It didn't take them long to find me."

"They should have never lost sight of you. That is their job." Ronon ground out clearly relishing the prospect of the next sparring session with the Marines.

"Well, nothing to worry about this time. Teyla is going with me, and it's just a quick overnight visit to her people. A clinic during the day for anyone in need and then a feast at night and then back home the next day."

Jennifer watched Ronon dig back into his food. Hopefully he was not upset about her mishaps. She did not want to cause any of the teams concern. She was just so out of her element when she was off-world.

Lorne clearing his throat pulled her out of her wandering thoughts. "Well, if that house arrest bracelet idea is ever a go let me know. We should really outfit all of SGA-1 with those. It seems they are always running into trouble, and my team has to come to the rescue." Ronon just glared at Lorne while he chuckled.

"Well boys, I need to go finish packing up for my trip. No getting hurt while I am gone, but if you do…" she looked over at Ronon, "no scaring my staff. Let them treat you, or when I get back I will make you wish you never got hurt."

As she was walking away from the table she heard a low rumbled "yes ma'am" followed by a deep chuckle.

* * *

Ronon was pacing outside the infirmary. He had been anxious from the moment Teyla and Doc had left for New Athos, but he had kept himself as busy as possible. He should've talked Sheppard into checking on them sooner. Instead he had waited 'til they were late and then tracked Sheppard down. When they had flown through the gate to see what was keeping the girls his stomach had dropped to his feet when he saw the Bola Kai warriors guarding the gate.

After they'd rescued the girls and gotten them on the jumper to head home, he had sat in the back with Doc. It was a very short trip, but she had been so quite and hadn't looked up from her shoes the entire time. It gave him the chance to really look at her. He was torn between the need to comfort her and the anger at the situation they'd been in and the men that had held them. She had a hurt ankle for sure and a split lip that he could see. The thought that someone had hit her made his blood boil. _What else had they done to her? What else had her and Teyla had to endure before they arrived to get them back?_

So now he was pacing outside the infirmary waiting for Teyla and Jennifer to be checked out by the doctors and allowed visitors. It seemed to be taking longer then he thought it should. Rodney and Sheppard had gone to eat and would be back shortly.

As he turned to walk back the length of hall he was burning a hole through he saw Jennifer come out of the infirmary door.

"What are you doing Doc? Shouldn't you be inside resting?"

She smiled up at him, but he noticed it didn't quite reach her eyes. "My ankle is just sprained." She pointed down to where it was wrapped.

He moved until he was standing directly in front of her. He ran a finger lightly over her lower lip and the split there. "Your ankle is not your only injury." He locked his eyes with hers for a moment, but then she lowered her eyes to her feet.

She took a deep breath before looking up at him again. He could tell that she was struggling to keep her composure. "I will be fine Ronon. I just finished going over Teyla's chart and labs and she'll be staying overnight. She took a stronger beating and I think that she may have a concussion. She should be released in the morning."

Ronon knew that meant that Jennifer had also taken a beating, although she felt that it was not as severe as Teyla's. Teyla, however, was trained for fighting and receiving blows. Ronon was sure that the doctor had not been prepared for anything that she had experienced in New Athos though.

Sheppard and Rodney had arrived by this time and further discussion with the Doc was going to have to wait he thought as she began to tell them about Teyla's possible concussion and overnight stay. "You can all go visit with her, just don't be too long, she could use the rest." My staff will be checking her periodically throughout the night."

She smiled at them all, but she was not fooling anyone. "I need to go shower and get some rest myself, but I wanted to thank you guys. Knowing that you'd come made it less scary for me. Teyla, though, is the reason I made it through. She is a very strong woman."

Jennifer looked down and back up as if gathering thoughts that were scattering. "Not knowing what has become of her people is weighing very heavy on Teyla and she is finding sitting and doing nothing while healing in the infirmary very trying, but it's important for her to rest." Jennifer gave them one last reassuring smile as she started off. "Go see your teammate, and please make sure she rests."

Ronon watched her walk towards the transporter to get to her room. He wanted to comfort her, but had no idea how exactly to do that, so instead he turned to go catch up with his team who were already by Teyla's bedside.

John watched Ronon move to Teyla's bedside a moment or two behind Rodney and himself. He looked frustrated and regretful, but John understood that. He has always felt responsible for those living in Atlantis and especially for his team.

Finding out that part of his team had needed him almost from the moment they went through the gate made him feel a great deal of guilt. While he was playing games and later that night sleeping, Teyla and Doctor Keller had been desperately trying to hold out and survive until after their scheduled return knowing that he would come for them then and that until then they were on their own.

John watched Teyla visiting with his team and felt a small sense of peace knowing that his team was home. He noticed that Teyla was engaged in two different conversations with Ronon. The one that could be heard and the other that was silent but could be understood by observing their body language and tone inflection.

"Has Doctor Keller retired for the evening?" Teyla was asking Ronon.

"Yeah, she said she needed sleep, just like you do. I think she wanted us to not take up too much of your time."

"She is probably exhausted. She does not think that she is brave, but she is quite brave."

"She didn't look herself." Ronon looked around the room clearly uncomfortable. John wasn't sure exactly why, but Teyla's line of conversation was making Ronon nervous "Probably could use that sleep."

"Ronon, she should probably not be alone after what she went through today." John noticed that she had raised one of her eyebrows as she finished her statement.

"She may just need the space."

"I don't think that is the case." She looked at Ronon hard, "She shot a man today. That can not sit well for a healer, even if death is not the end result."

John saw Ronon and Teyla watch each other for a moment longer before he decided to interject into their conversation, "Doctor Keller shot someone? How come I'm the team leader and yet the last to know everything?"

"I am sorry John, there has not been much time and the debriefing is tomorrow. Nabel, a man that Jennifer treated medically was also hiding from the Bola Kai. He rescued us when the Bola Kai heard you come through the gate and went to look for you. After we were away from the camp, Nabel turned a gun on me and intended to shoot. Jennifer tackled him, and secured the gun. She was shaking badly and Nabel was sure that she would not shoot him because she was a healer. In fact, she did shoot him."

"Way to go Doctor Keller." John said. "I knew she had it in her."

"Indeed," Teyla said proudly, "She is stronger then she realizes." John saw Teyla make eye contact with Ronon again.

"I'll go find her," Ronon said while looking at Teyla.

"We should be letting Teyla rest anyway. Maybe we should all go find the good doctor." John suggested while looking at Rodney and Ronon for confirmation.

"I think this is something that Ronon needs to do" Teyla suggested.

"Oh?" He turns to give Teyla a questioning look. She purposely looked him steadily in the eye while raising one of her eyebrows.

"Oh…" John's eyebrows shot up in understanding, when he turned toward Ronon though all he got was a shot of his receding back as the man walked away.

Rodney whined next to John, "What is everyone not talking about."

"Come on Rodney," John said as he threw his arm around the scientist, "let's go see if the kitchen has any desert left and I'll explain it to you."

As they left the side of the bed John reached down and squeezed Teyla's hand, "we'll check on you again later. Get some rest."

* * *

As Ronon approached the pier he wondered why he even checked her room first. He saw her dangling her legs and laying down to stare up at the sky. She looked so small and fragile sitting there and it was hard to believe that this little woman tackled a man and shot him.

Seeing her lying there reminded him of movie night and the time they spent out here. Ronon walked over to where the Doc was laying and mimicked her position as he sat down next to her. Like the other night, he made sure they were close enough for their shoulders to touch. He turned his head for a moment and studied her face. He could see the trail her tears had taken and could see the pool in her eyes of tears that she had not yet cried, but was holding back.

He reached over and took her hand that was closest to him and simply held it unaware that his thumb was lightly rubbing her hand in comfort. They lay like that for quite awhile. His only concern at the time was to be whatever she needed. At this moment it seemed that she just needed to not be alone.

When he felt a change in her he turned his head to look at her face again. He saw the tears coming down again. "Come here," he quietly said as he pulled her over against his side, her head against his chest and his arm around her holding her close as he let her cry.

When it seemed that the tears were gone, he started speaking quietly and slowly hoping to be that calming reassurance that she needed. "I hear that you were strong and brave today. Teyla said that you saved her. That although you were scared, when the time came you were able to find it within you to do what was needed. I'm sorry I wasn't there for you Jennifer, but I want you to know that I'm proud of you. I knew you were strong and am not surprised."

He felt her stir a moment before she began to speak. "I was so scared Ronon," she said against his chest, "but Teyla kept yelling at me, telling me what we needed to do. That we only needed to make it past check-in time. That you all would come for us and our only job was to make it 'til you came. She was so strong, she expected me to be strong. She is why we made it."

"No Jennifer, she may have kept the two of you going, but… when push came to shove you are the one who tackled the enemy," Ronon stated, looking down to meet Jennifer's eyes. "You are the one who shot the man who was threatening you… you are the one that made it 'til we came for you. He took a deep breath and pulled her closer to his side, "you and Teyla are both alive because you both did well."

"Thank you Ronon, for coming for us, for coming after me out here and trying to comfort me."

"I'll always come after you Doc, even if we weren't friends, but especially because we are friends."

"We are friends, aren't we," she said with a little awe in her voice. "I just never thought someone like you would want to be my friend."

"I have thought the same about you, Doc. I guess we surprised each other. Now, let's get you to your room. I hear you need some sleep." And with that he helped her up and towards her room.

As they arrived at her room she turned to him, "Ronon since we are friends can I ask a favor?"

"Anything."

She hesitated for a minute, but then seemed to dive in. "Would you mind staying with me just until I fall asleep? I am having a little trouble closing my eyes; my mind just keeps wandering back over events of the day."

"Of course," he said as he took her hand.

She crossed the room to the bed and released his hand as she laid down on the right side of the bed motioning for him to lie on the left. After he was settled on his back she rolled onto her side and reached for his hand just before closing her eyes. "Thank you, Ronon."

"Goodnight, Jennifer." He watched her smile as she began to drift.


	6. Observations and Uncertainties

_A/N: Thank you to everyone who has read and/or reviewed, it really does make my day. This chapter is probably the one that I am most unsure of, but it continues the story so…here you are. Thank you Renisanz for all of your help and thoughts that have helped make this story so much fun._

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Stargate Atlantis or it's wonderful characters.

Spoilers: Through Season 4 - Quarantine.

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6 – Observations and Uncertainties

Ronon and Jennifer had slipped into a predictable routine. They probably didn't realize it, just like they probably didn't realize that they were the gossip for most of Atlantis. It actually wasn't even gossip like you would think. Usually gossip has a negative connotation. This was more like those living on Atlantis were watching a reality show and were filling each other in on what the others may have missed.

The lunch staff and those at lunch would see the two come in and grab their trays of food and head off to a table. A little bit later they would be joined by the rest of the team. When this particular routine began, it had been Lorne and Ronon that came to lunch and joined Jennifer whenever she happened to be there. After awhile it had moved to just the couple joined by the others.

The lunch staff had speculated that Lorne had probably played match maker. They had heard from the infirmary staff that Lorne had come into the infirmary several times with Ronon, but was no longer making appearances unless he needed the medical attention.

The infirmary staff saw Ronon often but his need for medical attention had decreased. Many times he just came by to visit with their CMO and convince her to go to lunch. Although they were still a little scared of the big man, they always got that dreamy look when relating their newest scene to the others. He seemed to handle her with such care and concern and, they loved seeing their very busy and often neglectful-of-her-own-health boss treated in such a way.

The gate room technicians related the couple's coming and goings through the gate and also meetings that they attended. The techs got to see the protectiveness that Ronon had when going through the gate with Dr. Keller. He seemed to always position himself so that she always went through the gate in the middle of the team; many times this meant that he went through after her. If she was going off world with a different team he was always lurking, watching her leave. The staff had made it a game to see who could locate his position first because he seemed to make it a point not to be seen by her and probably also hoping to not be seen by any others in the gate room.

The engineers and custodial workers had been able to add a scene which had earned them a right to be in the loop. They related how Ronon had first approached custodial to see if they could replace the sign on the CMO's office door. Then the engineers had related that they had actually been the ones that made the new sign thinking it such a sweet gesture, as only engineers could think a new sign as being sweeter than a gift of flowers or chocolates.

Even the Marine's were speculating; some were even betting on everything from if the two would get together to when, where and how. Of course they were keeping it very low key. An agitated or worse yet, angry Ronon was not someone you wanted to encounter while training or sparring. They did enjoy watching the big Satedan all twitter-pated however.

And so the city's fascination with the Runner and the CMO probably explained the atmosphere of glee in the mess hall during dinner after Radek was able to override the city's quarantine. It got around the city quickly that Ronon and Doctor Keller had been locked in the infirmary together. Many people were going out of their way to see if they could spot the two. Everyone was curious about what happened during their time in there. They had heard about the oxygen tanks, but surely the doctor and the Satedan had time to spare while waiting for the infirmary doors to open.

Ronon and Jennifer were too wrapped up in what almost happened to notice all of the people watching them. They noticed the unusual amount of people walking the halls, but chalked it up to everyone having cabin fever after the quarantine.

* * *

After Radek successfully ended the quarantine and Jennifer found out that there was no outbreak she still found herself with a lot to do. When she wasn't patching up someone who had hurt themselves trying to get out of their place of confinement then she was cleaning up the mess in the infirmary. Most of Jennifer's staff had stopped by to help put the infirmary right. There had been a little bit of a stir when Ronon had come by to help, but she supposed that since he helped make the mess he probably felt the need to help clean it up. She was not going to let herself think about what almost happened before the doors where opened or that he might be back for any other reason.

Jennifer watched Sheppard walk into the infirmary looking around. "What's up Colonel?"

"No injury, I'm just hear to collect my team. We were able to connect with all of the teams that were stranded off world because of the lockdown except for one, we're gonna have to go find them. I figured Rodney is probably recouping from his symptoms of the rampant outbreak and Ronon should be helping clean up his attempt to bust out of here." Sheppard looked around the infirmary and shook his head while letting out an exasperated sigh "although, if I was locked in a room with a pretty doctor, I can't say that I'd have been trying so hard to get out."

Jennifer knew that she was blushing but tried to ignore it and move on. "Rodney is fine, he is over there" she said while pointing to one of the beds where the team member in question was engrossed in his computer tablet.

Jennifer raised her voice "Rodney, Ronon it looks like Colonel Sheppard is here to collect the two of you." She turned to the Colonel, "We are kind of busy here tonight so I won't be offended if for once you bring your team home injury free."

He smirked at her and winked as he turned to follow his team out of the infirmary.

After a couple of hours Jennifer was starting to feel the effects of coming down off of the adrenalin rush both from the threat of an out break and then the nervousness of almost kissing Ronon. There was still a lot to do in the infirmary, and she had the early shift in the morning. She knew that the only reason that she had not called it quits was because she was hoping that SGA-1 would return and wander into the infirmary, but it was really a stupid reason to not go get some rest. They could be gone for several more hours, and even still, Ronon may not come here when he did get back.

After a few minutes Jennifer noticed that she was still loitering. As she looked around the infirmary she couldn't help but think of Ronon and the near kiss again. She mused that she would probably replay it as many times as she could. It was just so exciting, thinking about what almost happened. How he leaned in. It really did amaze her that he leaned in. It wasn't that she didn't want him to, but she had a hard time imagining that Ronon Dex would _want_ to lean in. The thought that he was hoping for a kiss was exciting and still had the power to stop her breath.

The first few times that she had treated the man after she arrived on Atlantis had been unnerving. To be stitching up someone who was practically famous made her mind scramble for something to talk about in the hopes of not sounding stupid. She had heard a lot about the Satedan Warrior, the Runner who had killed scores of Wraith and had joined Sheppard's team.

Fortunately Ronon needed stitching quite frequently. She had found plenty of opportunities to get to know the big, quiet man who refused painkillers. The more she treated him the more comfortable she became until one day she noticed that she was downright bossy with him and it made her blush. From that moment on she found that she was unnerved by the man for completely different reasons. She had finally found her type, the strong, silent type.

Jennifer was pulled from her thoughts when she noticed that Lorne had walked in and was surveying the room. "I heard that you and Ronon got locked in here together, Doc. I had to come see for myself." He started laughing as he looked around, "The man doesn't like to be idle that's for sure." He shook his head, "Looks like you have a ways to go still, Doc."

"Yeah, I sent the staff home a while ago to get some rest. We'll need to finish this up tomorrow."

"Boy, you and Ronon really did a number on the place" he chuckled again.

"That would be Sheppard's influence. He got the idea from the movie _Jaws_."

Smirking, Lorne was shaking his head "I know the exact scene that did this. He does love that movie."

Lorne looked around the infirmary again, and Jennifer tried to see the room through his eyes. "Well, Doc, why don't I walk you home since you're going my way? I'm sure that tomorrow will be soon enough to finish this."

"You talked me into it, Major." Jennifer smiled as she slid her arm through the arm that Lorne was holding out.

They visited and laughed about the events of the day on the way to her quarters and the trip lasted no time at all. They each said goodnight and Jennifer kissed Lorne on the cheek before waving him off to his own quarters.

She walked into her own quarters but just as quickly walked back out. Her body may have been tired and ready for sleep, but her mind was not yet ready to quiet down so she decided to wander off to her pier to do some thinking.

* * *

When Ronon and the team came back through the gate he waved goodbye and headed off towards the infirmary. He hoped that she was not still working. It was late and it'd been an exhausting day. Yet he did hope that she was working because he wanted to see her, even if it was just long enough to tell her to get to bed.

It had taken longer than he thought for their off world mission trying to locate the missing team. When SGA-5 couldn't successfully dial the gate they'd tried a few more times before heading back towards the village. They'd been invited to the feast that night, but had declined because they were scheduled to return, but once they'd established that it would be a while they decide to go back to the village for dinner. It had ended up being a pretty big party and they'd lost track of time. The village was a ways from the gate so it had taken a while for SGA-1 to approach it cautiously and then to trek back when they discovered the missing team was fine.

As he entered the infirmary he found just the night shift nurse and doctor. Before he could voice a question the nurse spoke up. "She has turned in for the night. She has the early shift tomorrow."

He did not have to ask who 'she' was, but then again it was a little curious that she did not have to ask why he had come to the infirmary. "Thanks" he said as he turned and walked towards his quarters.

When he rounded the corner of one of the hallways he saw Jennifer and Lorne just outside her quarters laughing. He froze and watched for a moment as he saw the doctor reach up and kiss his cheek before turning in. After Lorne left the hallway towards his own quarters Ronon hung his head wishing that he had not seen that. He heard a noise down the hall and looked up to see the Doc come out of her room and head down the hall. He knew that she was headed out to the pier. It had been a long day and he knew her well enough to know that she was exhausted but probably needed to unwind.

He wanted to go out there. Spending time in her presence was so soothing and exhilarating, but he did not know what he would say to her. They had almost kissed, and he had felt like things were moving forward, but seeing her kiss Lorne, even if it was only on the cheek was causing some serious doubt on how well he was reading her.

He had had a hard time concentrating on the mission and she was the reason. He had replayed their time during the lock down several times. They had shared very private hurts and sad times in their lives and his comfort level revealing things to her surprised him. Actually the Doc was constantly surprising him with her depth of caring and her strength as a person and a doctor.

He had taken her calmness in his presence as a sign that she was comfortable around him, didn't fear him as some did. She even had the nerve to be bossy at times. He looked forward to time spent with her and he was sure that she enjoyed time spent with him. When they were sitting in the infirmary waiting for the lockdown to end it had seemed right to lean in closer to her. When she looked up and leaned in to him with a smile on her lips his breathing stopped. Now with hours past he was uncertain if it was as breath-taking as he remembered

After seeing this exchange between her and Lorne he was having doubts about how she felt. Maybe they were not on the same page. But not following her out to the pier was not an option. He knew that no matter what he would end up out there. She drew him like a magnet, but he bargained with himself that he would do it after he had showered and was ready for sleep himself.

* * *

She felt his presence a moment before she heard him approach. As she continued to dangle her legs and stare up at the sky she waited for him to sit beside her. He seemed to know when she was out here. If she was truthful with herself it was one of the reasons she came out as often as she did. Sometimes they talked, but other times they sat and were still, listening to the water lapping at the city and the breeze whispering through the spires.

She was nervous about how this was going to go. She was so afraid it would be awkward or that she had screwed up and altered the friendship. She would love for him to see her as more than a friend, but she would settle for friend in a heartbeat because his friendship was worth it; she didn't want to lose it.

"Whatcha doin', Doc?"

She let his gravely voice wash over her and let out the breath she had been holding. He was now lying shoulder to shoulder with her and she felt her world right itself. It was going to be ok.

"I was waiting for you." She wasn't sure where this bravery had come from, but she was going to embrace it before it slipped away. The darkness was helping because it hid her face a little, but even more, it hid his face and expression to what he was hearing. She looked up to the sky and continued. "We left things hanging a little today and I knew that I couldn't sleep until I had talked to you."

"Did you know what you wanted to say?" His voice was low, but it gave nothing away. She had been hoping that she would know what to say once she heard his voice and saw his face, but that was not going to be of any help to her.

"Not exactly, I just know that I don't want to lose you as a friend, don't want things to become awkward between us. There are too many bad things that happen in this galaxy… I can't lose this thing we have going on. This friendship has come to mean a lot to me, Ronon, and I don't think I could handle it if I've… screwed things up."

She felt Ronon take her hand and the familiar flip of her stomach almost made her cry with relief. "Doc, you haven't screwed anything up, I hope I haven't screwed anything up."

She started to protest, but he squeezed her had to keep her silent. "I cherish this friendship we have like a gift. Nothing you do or say will change the fact that we are friends."

"Friends," she repeated and she hoped that she sounded happy, but inside she had been hoping that maybe this conversation would have gone a little differently. It'd been a stressful day though and she was exhausted so before she could say anything stupid she decided she should probably get some sleep.

"Do you want to walk me back Ronon? I need to get some sleep; I have to be up in a few hours for my shift."

They walked back to her door in silence. As they neared her door she felt an overwhelming nervousness take over. _What was going to happen when they reached her door? Would he lean it to kiss her or just say goodnight? Maybe it was not such a great idea to ask him to walk her to her room,_ she thought, slightly panicked.

At her door she turned and fidgeted with her hands while flicking peeks at his face. She mistook his hesitancy as a sign that he wasn't going to kiss her so she tiptoed and kissed his cheek. She knew that she was blushing but the act of kissing his cheek brought back memories of their almost kiss. "Goodnight Ronon," she said as she activated her door and slid through.

"Goodnight, Jennifer," she heard him say as her door closed. Hearing her name in that low voice always caused the flip in her stomach. She thought that by now he would not have this type of effect on her, and yet it would probably always be this way.


	7. Murphy's Law

_**A/N: **__This has truly been a great experience for my first posted story! You all have made it quite memorable. I hope this chapter continues the story and doesn't disappoint._

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Stargate Atlantis or it's wonderful characters.

Spoilers: Through Season 4 - Quarantine.

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7 – Murphy's Law

Sheppard peeked his head in the door and looked at her for a sign that she was ready. "Tarah and I were just finishing here, Colonel," Dr. Keller said as she and the healer of the village stood.

Atlantis traded medical supplies and knowledge with the people of Pantar. In turn their healer supplied Atlantis with knowledge of different homeopathic remedies. Many that they had traded so far had helped with different rashes and irritants that the teams had returned with on many of their off world missions. Just a week ago one of the captains came back with what looked like a very serious case of poison ivy, and she didn't even want to think about all of the things the botany lab had encountered.

Dr. Keller and Tarah stepped outside and joined SGA-1, who were already gearing up for the hike back to the gate.

Jennifer handed one of her medical bags off to Ronon and turned to Sheppard. "Tarah's staff has prepared a lunch for us to take for our trip back. She has told me of a plant that I would like to get a sample of on the way back. It's on the other side of the lake we passed near the gate. It would be a lovely place to have our lunch."

"Well, it sounds like a good plan to me, Doc,." Sheppard agreed as one of Tarah's staff came out with the provisions.

Tarah began to hand the sacks containing their lunch to Ronon when John intervened. "Thank your staff for this Tarah, but letting Ronon or Rodney carry the provisions is never a good idea, like kids in a candy store."

Tarah gave Keller an odd look of confusion.

She grinned at Tarah and explained, "He means they are both always hungry, and we may not have anything left for a picnic by the time we get to the lake if they are allowed to carry the food." Jenn leaned in and hugged the woman, "Until next time, take care."

"And you," Tarah replied.

* * *

Jennifer stuck the last bite of her lunch into her mouth and looked around while chewing. It was beautiful here beside the lake, and she felt a twinge of homesickness at the sight.

Ronon must have sensed something in her demeanor because he reached out and touched her shoulder. "You ok, Doc?"

"Yeah, just thinking of home, I'm fine. This really looks like something I might see at home."

"Your world must be beautiful," Ronon observed.

"Yes it is, but there are many places in the Pegasus that are beautiful. Atlantis is one of the most beautiful things that I have ever seen."

Ronon agreed, "More than I'd ever imagined."

Sheppard, who was lounging back relaxing like the others, spoke up. "So are we about ready to go? Really don't want to be falling asleep and missing our return trip. It'd be awfully embarrassing to have Lorne's team find us here napping."

Jennifer grinned at the image of that before speaking up. "I need to take a hike to the far side of the lake to get a few of those plants Tarah told us about. She said they grew across the lake where there had been some volcanic activity a long time ago. It seems to grow the best in that type of soil."

She stood up to get started. "I'll just hike around real quick and retrieve a couple of the plants for the Botany lab, and then I'll be ready."

Sheppard cleared his throat and spoke as Ronon stood up next to Jenn. "Doc, I can't let you go traipsing around the lake by yourself."

Jennifer was about to protest that surely walking around the lake would be uneventful, but Ronon spoke up "I'll go with the Doc."

"Great," Sheppard said as he smirked at the Satedan. "I thought you might. Well off with you then. You're holding up my beauty sleep."

There wasn't much conversation walking around the lake, but Jenn didn't mind. Ronon had slowed his pace and they were strolling through the woods as if it was a casual walk. The scenery was beautiful and the weather was pleasant. It made her forget for a moment that they were in a different galaxy and on a mission.

After some time Jennifer struck up a conversation. "Was Sateda like this?"

"There were parts of it like this, but where I was before the end was more like what your bigger cities look like. Lots of buildings, roads and things."

"We have those where I'm from, but getting out of town and enjoying this type of scenery was always wonderful." The moment seemed so intimate that Jennifer's thoughts began to run, wondering if he ever thought about taking her hand or any of the many other thoughts that skittered through her mind.

Suddenly Jennifer felt Ronon grab for her as the bottom fell out of her world. For a second she was free falling and the next she suddenly stopped. She heard an "oomph" from Ronon as she looked around to gather her wits. She found herself sprawled across Ronon's body. As the initial shock subsided the doctor in Jennifer kicked in.

"Ronon, are you ok? Did you hit your head? Did I hurt you? I am so sorry…"

Ronon place his hands on her hips and tightened his grip to get her attention. "I'm fine, Doc, just had the wind knocked out of me."

Realizing suddenly that not only was she still laying on top of Ronon, but also that she was probably the reason that he got the wind knocked out of him she quickly sprang off of him. "I'm… I…sorry about that." Jennifer stumbled through knowing that her face was scarlet in color.

Ronon slowly got to his feet and Jennifer tried not to look at him. "How are your ribs?" she asked quietly.

She felt Ronon's finger come to rest under her chin and he applied pressure to lift her gaze to his. "I'm fine, Doc."

Jennifer saw that he was smirking and ducked her head again. "So…," she looked around and realized they were in a very large hole in the ground. It reminded her of the pits that she had seen in some of the old jungle movies that were dug as traps for tigers and things and then covered with branches and leaves to disguise them. "I guess we fell." She instantly regretted stating the obvious, but the need to say something had gotten the better of her.

It was a pretty deep hole, and as she continued to look around she felt a shiver run up her spine. Jennifer tried her ear piece to raise the rest of the team to their predicament. "Colonel Sheppard, come in." She waited and looked at Ronon with a worried expression when he didn't respond after a few seconds. "Colonel Sheppard, this is Dr. Keller. Can you hear me?"

There was still no response. "They're not answering." Jennifer looked at Ronon, worried. "Well either these broke in the fall or the volcanic activity is causing interference."

"Don't worry, Doc. We'll find a way out, and if we don't return or answer soon they'll come for us. We won't be trapped long either way."

"I'm not really worried about Sheppard coming for us. I'm worried about what must be out there that would cause the need to dig something this deep and wide to capture."

Ronon's gaze widened for a split second and his hand instinctively touched his holstered gun. "We'll be fine."

"If you say so," Jenn said, but her voice didn't hold complete conviction.

* * *

On the other side of the lake Rodney impatiently paced as best as he could. "What is taking those two so long? This is not the time for a leisurely stroll in the woods," he whined as he threw his arm in the direction of the other side of the lake. "I have things I need to be doing back in the lab and I am sure that leaving all those underlings in the lab alone was not a great idea even for such a short amount of time."

Without opening his eyes Sheppard spoke up. "I'm sure that they will be here shortly Rodney just try to relax and enjoy this rare opportunity to do nothing."

"Well they had better return in time for us to make it to Atlantis for dinner. They are serving chicken cordon blue, and I have been looking forward to it all day."

Teyla sat up from where she was relaxing to try to calm Rodney a bit. "Have you thought to track their progress on the life signs detector?"

"Yes, yes, of course I have," he said in the most exasperated tone. "I watched as they walked around the lake, stopped to retrieve the plants and have not moved from that spot since. I know that we didn't tell them to hurry, but you would think that common courtesy would prevail. They can sit and visit when we get back. Some of us do have more pressing things to be doing than sitting around this lake, no mater how beautiful and relaxing it may be."

At this Sheppard sat up. "Rodney, how long have they been in the same location?"

Rodney noted a hint of wariness in his voice which immediately put him on a slight defense. "I would have to say about an hour now."

He watched Sheppard exchange a look with Teyla as the two began standing at the same time. "Why didn't you say that to begin with?" came Sheppard's irritated question.

"What? You don't think…"

Rodney was cut off by Sheppard trying his comm. "Dr Keller, come in."

"I already tried that. The volcanic activity on this planet is interfering with the radio frequencies and you'll not be able to reach them that way," Rodney stated, like he wouldn't have tried that already.

He saw Sheppard and Teyla securing their gear and checking their weapons. "Wait a minute you two, Ronon is with her, I am sure that he can handle retrieving a couple of plants."

"Grab your stuff, Rodney. We're moving out."

"Oh, alright," he grumbled as he gathered his gear to head out. "I'm so going to miss dinner," he grumbled under his breath.

* * *

Ronon was pacing. Actually more like trudging back and forth. He noticed that Jennifer had given up trying to stay out of his way and was now in the corner watching him.

They were truly stuck. They had searched for any way out, but there weren't many options. He had even had her stand on his shoulders at one point to verify that they were in too deep for her to get out and go for help.

"At least my luck is holding at none," he heard her griping to herself. "After this I will probably never be let off world ever again. I swear it's like Murphy's Law or something. They can't let me go anywhere. Even with the scariest and most successful warrior on the base I end up in a pit while on a peaceful and what should have been uneventful mission…"

Ronon smirked when he heard her refer to him as "the scariest and most successful warrior." He kind of liked hearing her refer to him that way. He had to admit that he wouldn't mind if they did refuse to let her go off world. He'd prefer it. She'd be safer on Atlantis, and he wouldn't have to worry about her as much. As it was he tried his best to be on most the missions she went on.

A nice by-product of her ramblings was that it had obviously taken her mind off of their predicament and the possibility that this wasn't the safest spot to be in while waiting for Sheppard and the team.

As if to prove his thought he heard a low growl coming from somewhere above them. Ronon's gun was quickly pulled and aimed at the opening above. He began backing up towards where he knew Jennifer stood.

"Ronon…" he heard the fear in her voice as he continued to move back towards her. He kept his gun aimed in the direction of the growl and his body between Jennifer and the predator.

"Jennifer, it's going to be ok." He reassured her in a low rumble. He reached under his shirt and extracted a knife holstered along his side and handed it back to her. "Take this. You won't need it, but you should always be prepared."

He felt her hesitate, but was proud of her that it was only for a second. _There's the brave and sure doctor who protected Teyla. The strong woman who helped me try to break out of the infirmary._ His thoughts came to a halt as he heard another growl from above. It was closer and louder this time.

He felt Jennifer lightly set a hand high on his back. It was distracting in it's hesitancy and tenderness, but he knew that she was finding comfort in the contact. He took a deep breath to clear his mind and remember where they were.

The animal above them made its presence know through a loud shriek and Ronon was sure that the animal was right at the opening and that they would get their first glimpse any moment. He kept his gun aimed at the opening and slowly backed them as far away from the growling as the pit would allow. His body now blocked her from view completely. He could feel her hand still laying high on his back, "we are going to be ok, Jennifer," he whispered. He felt her forehead lay on his back near her hand conveying her acceptance of that statement.

* * *

"Isn't retrieving this plant something that the botany department should do not Atlantis' number one off world team?" Rodney complained. They had been hiking for a while now and he was getting impatient.

"Rodney, what does the life signs detector say? Can you tell how much further before we reach them?" Teyla asked in her calming voice.

"Yeah, they should be just around the next bend in this trail…" He was forced to become quiet when John held up his fist for stop. In the distance he could hear a loud shriek of an animal that made all of the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. He immediately pulled up his P-90 into position.

"Let's go" whispered Sheppard. "Rodney you have our six."

"Great."

* * *

The animal was close enough that they could hear it's steps in the rustle of the leaves above. Some dirt rained down from above, causing Jennifer to close her eyes and hold her breath. She concentrated on Ronon's heartbeat in an effort to keep her mind focused.

"Ronon," she whispered, opening her eyes again and peeking around his back toward the opening. "Do you think they will be here soon?"

Without lowering his eyes or gun he whispered back "Any minute."

The growling seemed to be getting louder again and it was completely unnerving her. A movement above caught out of the corner of her eye. She squeezed both eyes shut. She heard a loud shriek from above and the animal breathing. Ronon was holding his breath and she began to hold hers once more. A moment later she heard his gun blast and felt his body relax. She pulled her head off his back again, but kept her hand resting lightly on his back not ready to let go yet.

"You ok, Doc?" she heard him ask quietly.

"Never been better," she said on a half laugh before the adrenalin rush took over and she felt herself begin to smile and laugh in relief. "I had your back the whole time."

She heard a throat being cleared above. "You two done lolly-gagging? The rest of us would like to go home." She peeked out from her hiding spot behind Ronon to look up at a grinning Sheppard.

"Let's go home, Colonel, I'm not sure how much longer my luck is going to hold for today." She said as she stepped away from Ronon.

Shepherd smirked at her. "I hear you, Doc. Ok everyone, let's get the hell out of here."


	8. The Cave

_**A/N: **__Thank you everyone for reading, and a special thank you to all that reviewed. I loved reading them, (they are addictive)! The next two chapters are so tied to each other that I will post them pretty close together. _

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Stargate Atlantis or it's wonderful characters.

Spoilers: Through Season 4 - Quarantine.

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8 – The Cave

Lorne stepped outside of what could only be described as a hut and looked at the sky again. There was definitely a large storm coming. The air had already cooled and the wind was starting to pick up. He looked back in the door to see Dr. Keller packing her bag up in preparation to move on to the next hut. She had been vaccinating the people in the village all day, and she had to be exhausted, but she was also, he had learned, quite stubborn. He had been trying to get her to come with him and Lieutenant Jacob back to the gate for the last hour but she would not hear of it. She wanted to get to everyone in the village so that no one else got sick.

He watched the Doc walk out next to him and look up at the sky. Lorne spoke up, "Ready to go? We have a bit of a hike to get back to the gate and we're expected back in about 15 minutes."

"Not yet, I have 3 more families to see, and then we can go."

Lorne gritted his teeth and opened his mouth to argue with her, but she cut him off.

"I'm not leaving here until I've seen those three families Major."

Lorne glared at her for a solid minute before stomping off grumbling.

"Jacobs," Lorne yelled as he approached the Lieutenant. "Head back to Atlantis and let them know we're going to be a little late, but right behind you. The Doc wants to finish the last three families, and then we will make a dash for the gate."

Lorne looked at the sky and prayed the weather would hold just a little longer. "You had better go now."

"Yes sir." Jacobs turned to go, but Lorne pulled him back.

"Lieutenan, wait up," he said as he pulled paper and pen out and scratched a quick note down. He re-read the note once: 'Your gift is safe, but stubborn and slightly belated.' He folded it and gave it to the Lieutenant. "When SGA-1 returns from their mission make sure Ronon gets this."

"Yes sir," the Lieutenant said, but had an amused look on his face.

"Do you have something to say, Lieutenant?"

"Permission to speak freely, Sir?"

"Granted, Jacobs" Lorne ground out, just wanting him to spit it out and get going.

"Sorry Sir, just thinking better you than me."

"Why is that?"

"Well Sir, the Doc has a way of attracting trouble. Just would rather deliver the message then be the on responsible for Ronon's woman, Sir."

"Ronon's woman Lieutenant?"

"Common knowledge, Sir, that the Doc is off-limits."

"Yeah well, I doubt Ronon would like knowing that he is that readable. Might make sparring and training with him eventful for you underlings. You better get going." Lorne held in a smirk at the startled look on Jacob's face.

"Yes, Sir."

* * *

Jennifer looked around the cave that she and Major Lorne had taken for shelter from the storm. It was actually not much more then an outcropping of rock, but it would keep them dry and out of the wind and for that she was thankful.

Those in the village had wanted them to stay. They had told her and Lorne that the storms could become quite fierce, but in the end they'd both been hoping that they'd be able to make it before the rain began. The wind, however, had made the hiking slow. When they saw a cloud ahead that looked like it was dumping buckets Lorne had quickly ducked them inside this small cave to wait for a break in the weather.

At the moment Lorne was standing at the opening of the cave watching the storm. They were now three hours late for their return to Atlantis. Jennifer knew that it was her fault that they were stuck here at the moment and had made many apologies to him. Lorne had told her it was fine, that they would make it home as soon as the storm let up and at least they were not in any danger. She couldn't help but still feel badly.

"Is it letting up at all, Major?" Jennifer was worried that it could be a while, and it was cold in the cave.

"No, not yet."

Jenn could tell that he was under stress. He was now pacing before the opening of the cave.

"I am sure that Lt. Jacobs has made it back and that Carter probably knows that we are waiting out the weather. Pacing does not make the storm go away though." Jenn watched the Major for a few minutes, "and it is a boring way to pass the time."

She watched Lorne turn and grin as he walked back to where she was sitting. "So you're saying that I'm boring you?"

"Maybe a little. I think we're going to miss movie night. Do you know who was picking tonight?"

She watched Lorne let out a deep breath and then sit down beside her. "Col. Sheppard was picking tonight, so I'm sure it would've been a good one. He probably picked one that Rodney would whine through."

Jenn laughed, "Do you think they're watching now?"

"No," Lorne said as he looked away.

"Sheppard's team was due back two hours ago. They have had plenty of time to get cleared by the infirmary and debriefed if necessary."

"Actually, Doc, I'd be surprised if they didn't gear up and come for us. I'm sure Ronon wouldn't let us stay out here long before he comes to rescue us." Lorne looked away mumbling, but Jenn still caught his words, "Even if we don't need it."

* * *

Another hour passed and Lorne was pacing again. The storm hadn't let up; in fact, it seemed to be worse. The rain had lightened, but the wind had become quite fierce. He was sure that sparring with Ronon wasn't going to be any fun for the next several weeks; the only reprieve might be if new recruits came in. A worried Ronon was an agitated Ronon. Lorne had noted that anytime Dr. Keller was off world for more than a couple of hours Ronon would become extremely restless, making all those around him nervous. If they weren't searching for them now, then he was sure Ronon was pacing in the gate room waiting for Sheppard to say they were leaving. Lorne wondered if Jenn had any idea.

Lorne looked over at Jenn and noticed that she looked cold. He walked over to give her his jacket but she refused. "Doc you should take it. We'll probably be here a while still. The storm doesn't look like it's ready to lighten up any time soon. I've tied down some light sticks at the mouth of the cave in case anyone comes for us."

"Major, can I ask you something?"

Lorne moved closer to her. "Sure anything."

"Um… this may come off kind of …" she faltered, but he saw her determination. "I was wondering do you… are you interested in me, um, romantically?"

He watched her look away as she blushed. Lorne was stunned. He was having trouble thinking of a reply. _Was she interested in him? This was not good!_ He didn't want to embarrass her or himself, but he had to give her props - she was a bold one at times.

Lorne cleared his throat and decided to go with honesty and be as straight with her as she was when asking him the question.

"Jenn, um, no?" It came out as a question; he jumped right back into it. "Not because you aren't beautiful and smart, fun to be around, even brave, but… _friend_ is what I think of when you come to mind." Lorne sneaked a peek at her to see how she was doing.

"Well, that's a relief" she laughed.

Lorne thought that maybe he should be offended! "Hey, men have fragile ego's you know." Lorne laughed and sat down next to Jenn.

She laughed at him. "No, that is good. _Friend _comes to mind for me also and right now _warm friend_ comes to mind."

Lorne looked at her puzzled. He felt Jennifer shift closer to him.

"I'm cold Major and I would love to snuggle up to you, but I didn't want to give you the wrong impression. Do you mind if we snuggle?"

Lorne thought she was adorable, and that Ronon was right; she was a gift. She was such a mixture of sexy and innocent, elegant and girl next door, the brave and strong doctor and woman who must be jinxed, if her on and off world record was any indication.

He put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. He felt her wrap her arms around him and burrow against his side which caused him to laugh.

He gave her a quick squeeze, "so why did you have the impression that I may like you?"

"I don't know really, I guess because you seem to be around a lot more lately. Sometimes it seems like you make a point of finding me. I know it sounds crazy, so… enough about that." He could tell that she was giving in to sleep; he could hear it in her voice. "Tell me a story, Major."

"Sure, why not." Lorne let out a breath and settled better against the wall of the cave. "But it's Evan, ok?"

"Um hm."

Lorne began telling her stories of his days as a pilot for the Air Force. As the wind blew hard outside, gusting at times to a scary pitch, he felt her drift off and knew that he was not long behind her.

* * *

Ronon and Col. Sheppard had been walking through the fierce wind now for about an hour. There had been a couple of times he had been struck by flying debris but it did seem to be calming a bit in the last few minutes. He and Sheppard knew that most likely Lorne and Keller had waited out the storm in the village, but they were very methodically walking the trail between the stargate and the village in case they had braved the weather to get home. Ronon wanted to be sure that there had not been some accident and that neither of them were hurt somewhere along the trail.

Ronon had taken the right side of the trail and Sheppard the left. Although he was relieved that they had not seen anything amiss, he was also getting impatient with how long it was taking to walk the trail. Knowing that she was with Lorne should be reassuring but the good doctor had a way of finding trouble even where there wasn't any. He would feel great relief once they had her back home on Atlantis.

As he looked up ahead on the trail to see if the village was in view yet, a dim light caught his eye off to the left. "Sheppard, think I found something," he radioed as he started to sprint ahead. Soon Sheppard was behind him and they were almost at the opening to what looked like a cave. As Ronon saw what was giving off light, he grinned. It looked like Lorne had tied off a couple of glow sticks in case anyone came looking. As he climbed the short way to the entrance he smiled knowing that he almost had her back within his comfort zone, which was within his sight when not on Atlantis.

As he came into the cave and his eyes adjusted what he saw made him stop short. There cuddled together against the cave wall, was a sleeping Lorne and Jennifer. There were a few glow sticks scattered around for light, but that only made what he was seeing real and not a trick of the eyes in the dark. If it was anyone else he might think it comical or cute that they found them in that position, but instead he felt like his heart was beating in his throat.

A moment later he felt Sheppard slam into his back and realized that he should have moved out of the way knowing that Sheppard was right behind him.

Sheppard moved around him and took in the sight that had stopped Ronon dead in his tracks. "Now Ronon, remember that they have been here for quite some time and it is cold and this is probably a very innocent moment between friends," Sheppard told him quietly. "Lorne lit the entrance to the cave and the interior, he knew we would or actually, that _you_ would come."

Ronon just stood there routed to the spot for another moment. When he saw that Sheppard intended to wake them he quickly busied himself gathering up their supplies for the trek back to the gate.

Sheppard hoped that this was going to turn out better than it looked at the moment, but he couldn't prolong this any longer. They needed to get back to the gate before the storm picked up again and they all ended up in this cave. That would be an awfully long and awkward night.

"Major" he firmly stated as he shook Lorne awake. He watched Lorne wake up and take in his surroundings and the doc, still sleeping, cuddled up to him and a smile flicked across his face at the peaceful look on her face before the responsible member of the military persona kicked back in.

"Sir, glad to see you, obviously the weather is good enough to go home now."

Sheppard hoped that Ronon had not seen Lorne's brief smile while looking down at the doc, but he quickly figured that the big guy was too busy looking busy to notice.

"Yes Major, it doesn't seem like I get to do the rescuing very often, but then again you do have Keller with you…" He trailed off as he gestured toward the doc, and Lorne took the hint and woke the doctor up.

Sheppard saw that once she got her bearings the situation obviously embarrassed her, but she was putting on a brave front. "Sorry, Colonel, to be causing this problem. I really did think that we had time for just three more families, and I didn't want to see any more relapses…"

Sheppard cut off her rambling apology. "No need, Doc. Ronon just about has everything collected. Let's get you both home."

Lorne tried to get Ronon's attention several times. He was going to ask if Jacob's had delivered the note, but Ronon seemed to be avoiding any contact. Lorne strapped on his last bag to head out and decided to let it go for now. He would talk to Ronon once they were back on Atlantis.

If Jennifer noticed that Ronon was quieter - if that was even possible - she didn't show it at first, but by the time they got to the gate Sheppard noticed that she did steal troubled looks at the giant whenever she got the chance. He just hoped whatever was stewing could wait a few more minutes until that they were all back home.


	9. Ronon's Way

_**A/N: **__This is the last chapter. Thank you Renisanz, your help with this was invaluable and will make my future stories that much better. Your suggestions and patience was awesome._

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Stargate Atlantis or it's wonderful characters.

Spoilers: Through Season 4 - Quarantine.

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9 – Ronon's Way

Jennifer could feel the whoosh of the gate behind her as it shut down. Carter looked them over as she welcomed them back and told them that they would debrief in the morning. Sheppard nodded at everyone and said that he'd catch them later, and excited the gate room quickly. Ronon, who was standing very tensely in front of Jennifer with his back to her, mumbled something about having to go and walked off with out looking back.

Jenn just watched his retreating back. _What had happened?_ She couldn't even take a step forward; she felt paralyzed. Ronon had been so quiet the whole walk back to the gate. He had handled any attempt to get him to lighten up or talk with grunts and growls.

Jenn was moving swiftly in her mind from hurt to anger. She looked over at Major Lorne and narrowed her eyes at him. "What was that all about?"

She could see Lorne squirming and struggling with exactly what to say. "I am not in the mood, Major," she firmly stated. "You know or at least have an idea what bee is in his bonnet and I want to hear about it now!"

Lorne looked at the ground. He was shaking his head, and she thought she heard him mumble about the big guy killing him. "Doc, really I…" he trailed off, which was not helping her mood.

"What is it?" she demanded. She knew that they were being observed by those still in the gate room, but she didn't care anymore. She was cold and tired and hurt and she wanted to go to bed, but something important was going on here and she needed to know what it was.

Jennifer heard a throat being cleared above her. When she looked up she saw Rodney and several other technicians. As she was looking up Chuck spoke up, "When Sheppard's team got back earlier, Lorne's team was overdue." There was a long pause before Chuck spoke up again. "Doc, if I may, the man is crazy about you."

Jennifer could feel Lorne's head whip up when he heard this, and she swung around to level her gaze at him. "_What?_ Evan, is that true?" Lorne looked Jenn in the eye and slowly nodded his head before looking back to the ground and letting his shoulders slump in defeat.

"Jenn, it is not something that I was exactly free to tell you."

Jennifer looked back up at the control center above them and caught Chuck's eye. "But you knew," she yelled.

"Yes, ma'am," Chuck winced a little as he continued, "I think everyone knows that."

Jenn's eyes roamed the control center above and several of the technicians nodded their heads. "Except me," she whispered softly.

She felt Lorne's hand on her shoulder, "if everyone knows how Ronon feels about you it is not because he told them. It is merely an observation, and I'm sure…" Lorne raised his voice so those above could hear, "that if Ronon knew that people were even speculating about his feelings he would not be happy."

Jennifer's eyes went from sad to mad again in a matter of seconds. She looked up at the control center, "Rodney," she yelled, "where is he?"

The scientist looked down at her. "What?" he sputtered out slightly flustered.

"Don't act dumb, Rodney; I want to know where he is right now."

"Right, right, just one second." Rodney pushed some buttons on the city's consoles and after a short moment he was able to locate Ronon. He looked down at Jenn, "I don't think that …"

"Rodney, I need to know now. No matter how intimidating he is remember that I have the big needles, and you will need to see me on a regular basis while you are a member of Sheppard's team."

"I could always resign…" Rodney began to mumble.

"Rooodneeeey!" she yelled.

"Yes, yes, hang on." He took one more look at the screen. "He is in the mess, but don't…"

But Jennifer did not hear the rest; she was already storming out of the gate room.

* * *

Ronon was eating in the mess hall with Sheppard and Teyla. He knew he was in a surly mood but didn't care. They chose to sit with him so they could live with it. He was pretty sure he had been broadcasting his current mood so that it couldn't be missed.

He needed to get a grip on his mood but right now he was indulging it. He would rein it in later when he had time to breathe and think, far away from everyone. That woman was driving him absolutely crazy. Just when he thought he may be making some headway he finds her snuggled up in a cave with Major Lorne. Granted it was cold out and they did not have much with them to keep warm, but it looked pretty cozy and THAT image would not leave his mind.

As he pulled his mind away from that image he felt her presence nearby. He always knew when she was near. He could smell her and feel her. It had been that way since he met her. It seemed that he was damned to be haunted by this ability that would torture him for the rest of his days. He didn't dare look up, seeing her would be a blow that he wasn't ready for.

He heard Sheppard clear his throat. "Hey Doc, you want to join us?"

Ronon held his breath while his mind prayed she'd say no. But if that were so why would she be standing there.

"Actually" he heard her say in a voice filled with anger, "I need to talk to Ronon."

He guessed he was going to have to look at her after all. "I'm busy right now. It'll have to wait." He heard Teyla's sudden intake of breath. He figured he was being rude, but he really didn't want to look at her or talk to her right now.

"Ronon, unless you want me to discuss this right here, right now, I suggest you meet me out on the balcony." He'd heard her use that authoritative voice before with marines in the infirmary and had always found it sexy, not that he didn't find it sexy now, but he found it also made him more stubborn.

He knew that she had walked away and expected, no, demanded him to follow. He wanted to ignore her. Sheppard cleared his throat to speak, but Ronon observed Teyla put her hand on his upper arm to stop him. Ronon was very grateful for her intervention and nodded slightly at the two as he got up and headed to the balcony off the mess. He knew that people were trying to appear busy eating, but Atlantis was small and nothing got by anyone. He was sure that he and the doc would have an audience.

He walked through the door as it slid open and waited to hear it slide closed before quietly walking over to the railing where she was standing. At least if people did watch they wouldn't be able to hear this conversation. Her thoughts were running full steam, but she remained quiet and so he stood silently and waited for her to speak.

* * *

Jennifer tried to relax her mind, but all of the thoughts kept running amuck and she was having trouble reigning them in. They stood side by side for a very long stretch of time. She was unsure of where to start and what to say. She felt such a profound loss of something that she never even knew she had. Her anger had turned back to hurt during this waiting period on the balcony.

"Ronon, what is going on?" she asked in as even a voice as she could. She didn't want to show how hurt she was.

"What do you mean?"

"I want to know why or what has caused you to stomp all over our friendship today." She knew her voice was rising, but she was absolutely sure he knew what she was talking about.

"It's just a bad day, leave it be. Tomorrow will be better. I just need space and sleep."

"Why?"

"I don't want to go there now, Doc." His growl was getting deeper and she knew she was upsetting him with her persistence, but she no longer cared.

"Well, I do."

She felt him turn from the railing toward her and she turned to meet his angry eyes. "I'm not in a mood for talking," he said.

She decided to ignore his warning. "Are we friends, Ronon?"

She saw his jaw tighten, yet she persisted. "Did I somehow hurt our friendship?"

She watched him turn from her and start pacing. "Do you still want to be my friend?"

"Of course we are friends." he growled back at her during his pacing. "I just need some time to adjust my thinking. We should take a break and things will be better tomorrow."

"Why? Because you will find a way to hide your feelings for me and maybe find a way to only be my friend?"

She watched his head whip around and his gaze crash into hers. Her eyes widened "It's true," she breathed out. "They told me in the gate room that you cared for me, but I didn't think it could be true."

He took a step towards her, but she raised her hand. "No, wait. How long have you cared for me?" She quickly held up her hand again, "No, wait. I don't want to know." She looked at him and then down at her feet. "Were you ever going to tell me, or were you hoping it would just go away?"

"No, I would never hope for that to go away. I was trying…" Ronon stopped and lowered the strength in his voice, "I was trying not to screw up whatever possibility there might be that you would actually be interested in someone like me." His voice became more exasperated again. "I have no idea what Earth women expect or want and have found some of your courting rituals confusing and frustrating."

"Don't you think that if I was interested in you that I'd be interested in the _Ronon Dex _way of doing things, not the Earth male way of doing things?" She took a step closer to him as her voice became fiercer. "Why wouldn't I want to experience your way of doing things?"

"Believe me, my way of doing things would have been much more straight forward," he growled out, mirroring her frustrated anger. "I would have claimed you as mine months ago, and we would have been bound by now."

Jennifer had quit breathing. She could feel his eyes on her, but knew he was holding his breath also. "Bound would be…" she whispered.

"Like your marriage," he answered with a whisper.

"All this time wasted." Jennifer shook her head and looked at him. "When we started to be friends I could not believe it. I was on cloud nine with the idea that someone like you would be more than friendly towards me, but actually a friend, wow. I am not the type of person that a man like you usually befriends."

Jennifer looked down and her feet, fidgeting. "I have to confess that I spent many nights wondering what it would be like if you became interested in me and wanted more then friendship, but I believed that they were just fanciful day dreams." Jennifer felt anger returning. "Now I am finding out that you truly did want more then friendship," Jennifer stated as she threw her arm in the general direction of the control room. "If I had known, I would have wanted to be claimed by you, and, by all means bind away if it means that you are mine also."

When Jennifer looked up at Ronon she could see that his eyes still showed the stormyness of anger, but also the darkness of a predator and the look was unnerving her quickly since it was all focused on her. As she began to realize what she had actually just confessed she felt a twinge of fear for what he was thinking and of what he would say next.

She quickly spoke up, "I think that you were right. Today was a bad day, and tomorrow will be a better day." She took a deep breath and quickly walked through the door and back into the mess.

As she walked through the mess she realized that she and Ronon had quite an audience and although they were all trying to act busy and oblivious she was not buying it. She would also swear that there was almost double the amount of people in the room now compared to when she walked through to the balcony earlier.

As she walked by Sheppard's table she noticed that Rodney and Lorne were both seated there. They weren't even pretending that they were there to eat. Neither had even bothered to get a tray. She acknowledged Lorne's presence as she came even with their table. "I'll see you at the briefing in the morning." After nodding at the table she continued on toward the exit.

* * *

Ronon watched the door swish closed as he processed her parting words. She wanted to be his and in turn for him to be hers. _When had _that_ happened?_ His mind was just not wrapping around that as fast as his heart. His heart was already beginning to soar; he could feel the adrenaline in his body as he suddenly turned to see where she was headed. As he looked through the window into the mess and realized that she was already halfway through the mess.

She was wrong; this could not wait until tomorrow.

He ran to the door and impatiently waited for it to open and allow him through. He strode up behind her as she left Sheppard's table and grabbed her arm to halt her. She stopped, but didn't turn around.

He stepped forward and reached across her body for her other arm and gently turned her around. Her eyes were closed and head bowed. With a gentle finger under her chin he lifted her face upward. Ronon took another step closer "Jennifer, look at me, please." As she opened vulnerable eyes to look into his eyes, he felt his heart pounding as his mind kept replaying the thought of her wanting to be his over and over again.

Ronon slowly began to lower his face towards hers. "This is not such a bad day." He could see tears forming in her eyes, but a slow smile made an appearance on her face at his words. Ronon leaned in closer to her and watched as she leaned in and his lips found hers.

He deepened the kiss as he wrapped his arms around her and lifted her off the ground. She was finally in his arms. He was kissing the Doc and she was kissing him back! As his lips moved over hers he could feel her smile and taste her tears, as her arms encircled his neck. He pulled back to be able to look at her, but didn't set her down. A smile of his own turned into a laugh as he tightened his arms around her. "I claim that I and my heart are yours, Jennifer Keller, may I claim you as mine?"

He watched as the smile on her face turned to laughter, "Ronon Dex, I will always be yours," she answered.

He smiled and kissed her soundly as he lowered her feet to the ground and slowly removed her arms from around his neck. As the kiss ended he pulled back and stared in her eyes for a moment as he let his mind catch up. A moment later he leaned over and slung Jennifer over his shoulder, heading straight for the exit.

The buzz of those laughing and talking around them had been steadily growing. Upon seeing the CMO get slung over Ronon's shoulder the crowd became deafening, yet he heard Jennifer shouting above the noise, "What are you doing, Ronon!"

With out breaking stride he shouted back at the struggling Doc, "You are mine now." He felt Jennifer's body shake with laughter as they continued toward the exit.

Ronon Dex was going to do this _his_ way from now on.


End file.
